After defeating Ohio State on Friday 2-0 and leading No. 11 Penn State 1-0 going into the second half, it looked like a dream weekend was shaping up for the Wildcats (6-5-1, 1-3 Big Ten).
That was until Penn State senior forward Audrey Aden-Buie scored two goals to carry Penn State (8-2-1. 3-0 Big Ten) to a 3-1 victory and destroy NU’s hopes of a perfect weekend.
“We played really well on Sunday and to be up against one of the best teams in the country shows we can compete with anyone,” senior goalkeeper Lauren Johnston said. “It was great to score the goal, and defensively, it was tough to hold off a team like Penn State.”
On Sunday, the Cats kept the Nittany Lions from scoring for the first thirty minutes of play courtesy of three saves from Johnston.
The Cats got off to a great start as freshman Jennifer Baumann socked home the first goal of her NU career.
“We just try to come out stronger and harder in the second half,” Baumann said. “But to have a start like that (in the second half) was great and I was very excited to score and watch the ball hit the back of the net.”
Unfortunately, the Cats were unable to find the back of the net for the remainder of the game and let the lead slip with a full half to go as Penn State scored three unanswered goals.
According to Baumann, the collapse came down to her fellow players not taking advantage of obvious opportunities.
On Friday, the Cats put on another impressive defensive performance when they shut down Ohio State, 2-0. Johnston came up with four saves, including one from point blank range in the second half.
“Being a senior, I’ve tried to step it up this year and be a leader on the field,” Johnston said. “The biggest thing for me is working hard for the team and coaches and being a presence in the goalbox.”
Senior midfielder Shannon Schneeman continued to impress as she scored the first goal in the Cats’ victory. The goal was her seventh of the season.
The second goal came from junior Krystal Patterson, who came off the bench to put sophomore Zendzi Neal’s perfect cross into the back of the net.
“Our team is focusing not just on people on the field this year, but on people off the field,” Johnston said. “We focus on having an active bench and its great to have people who can come off the bench to make plays or even score goals.”
NU’s improvements should do a great deal for its confidence when it plays Illinois next weekend.
“All the teams in the Big Ten are really big opponents for us but Illinois is a really big one,” Johnston said. “By no means, did the loss against Penn State affect our aims for the season of winning as many games as possible and have a strong finish in the Big Ten Championship.”
Reach Pritish Behuria at [email protected].
